Where is Martin Sheen?

Tuesday, November 17, 2009
East Wing Martini

My mind tends to work in strange and mysterious ways. Not all of them logical. Few of them, in fact. First thing I thought of when I saw the name of this cocktail was the old West Wing TV series. I loved that show, at least in the earlier years. I didn’t watch much of the last season or two. It lost a lot of charm for me after Aaron Sorkin left the show, some of the spark just wasn’t there anymore. And of course my conservative boyfriend hated it, a bunch of Democrats spouting off every week. I suppose for me it was a fictional respite from the very long years of the Bush administration … one could tune in once a week and think, “if only …” (if only our President actually had a brain! if only somebody like Leo McGarry really existed in the Oval Office! if only Toby Ziegler would try smiling for just one episode!) and so on. But after all this reminiscing, I realized I really know little to nothing about the “East Wing” of the White House. Assuming that’s what this drink is named after. WHY it would be named after it is another matter entirely. I’m not going to go there because I have no clue. It’s only my job to take you off to some hithertofore unexplored realms of imagination before telling you what I think of the martini I’m drinking. Hmmm. Sounds like a bartending version of The Twilight Zone. Hope that giant eyeball doesn’t start looking like a cocktail olive.

Will somebody PLEASE get Stockard Channing a martini?

The East Wing consists of 6 parts vodka, 1 part Campari, 2 parts cherry brandy, and the ubiquitous lemon twist. The East Wing of the White House is apparently where the First Lady’s office is now and where her staff works, although apparently that choice can vary from administration to administration. I couldn’t find out online whether or not that’s where Michelle Obama has her office. It seems like a long walk to work from wherever the First Family resides in the West Wing, but then again, it beats driving and she usually wears flats, so I’d give that a two thumbs-up call for commuting. Maybe this martini is considered a dignified girlie drink worthy of First Ladies and hence the name. Or someone just pulled it out of their ass. Probably the latter.

So in mixing this, my red alert flag should have gone off because I’m starting to realize that Campari is right up there with Pernod in terms of “liquor to avoid” for me. Although it isn’t nearly as strong. It just doesn’t blow my skirt up, though. But for having one part Campari to 6 parts vodka, this was far more palatable to me than the equivalent proportion of Pernod would have been. I shudder at the mere thought. This is a lovely shade of reddish gold with a hint of pink to it, a very pretty drink, and the cherry brandy (I used Bols, I’ll be honest that prior to now I never knew what “Bols” made, I’d just heard the name as some kind of liqueur but it never clicked) mollified that bitter/herb bite of the Campari. A tad more cherry brandy and a bit less Campari and this might be just right for me. In this form, I would actually give it 3.5 stars – it was good. Much better than I expected. Worth sampling again in 2010.

2 Responses to “Where is Martin Sheen?”

Hey, Doug, thanks for the compliment – to be honest, one of my biggest motivations for starting this blog with my girlfriend Sue was that it makes me use those “writing muscles” as it were. I love to write but am so often unmotivated, uninspired, don’t have the time, don’t have a topic, you name it (insert excuse du jour here!). Doing this gives me a framework that I can do as much or as little with, and since they’re short entries, the pressure is off. Give it a try, just say what’s on your mind! Thanks so much for reading!